On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” So when they met together, they asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”   Acts 1:4-8

One of the constant themes of this blog is available power in the kingdom of God. During his three years of pubic ministry, Jesus operated in power and displayed that power through healing, deliverance, raising the dead, and other miracles. When he sent his apostles and disciples out to preach, he also gave them power and authority to heal and perform miracles.   While Jesus was physically on the earth his followers were operating out of the overflow of his life and ministry and under the umbrella of his authority. As he prepared to ascend back to the Father, he clearly indicated that the same power would still be available through the Holy Spirit.

Followers of Jesus still operate under his authority because he has all authority in heaven and on earth (Mt. 28:18). But Jesus clearly stated that power would come from a source present on the earth and that would be his Spirit. The question asked of him by his followers pertained to restoring the kingdom to Israel. Jesus gave no details of that restoration but simply told them not to leave Jerusalem until they had received power through the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Only them could they be adequate witnesses for the risen Lord.

That mandate reveals that adequate representation of Jesus on the earth must not only consist of words that faithfully proclaim the gospel, but must also consist of power to demonstrate the gospel. If the followers of Jesus needed to operate in power and authority (miracles) in the months immediately following the ascension of Jesus when eye witnesses of his miracles still abounded and those miracles were still fresh in the minds of those they were preaching to, how much more necessary is that demonstration 2000 years later after governments, philosophers, and educators have tried their best to destroy or discredit the Bible as a reliable record or to write Jesus off as a myth? Healing and deliverance lends immediate credibility to both Jesus and the Word of God in a world of skeptics. Even long time believers jump to an entirely different level of faith when they witness or experience authentic power in the kingdom of God.

Paul, himself spoke of that power on many occasions. To the church at Corinth he said. “My message and my preaching were not with wise and persuasive words, but with a demonstration of the Spirit’s power, so that your faith might not rest on men’s wisdom, but on God’s power” (1 Cor.2:4-5) and, “But I will come to you very soon, if the Lord is willing, and then I will find out not only how these arrogant people are talking, but what power they have. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of talk but of power” (1 Cor. 4:19-20).

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul also declared, “I pray also that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in the saints, and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is like the working of his mighty strength, which he exerted in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every title that can be given, not only in the present age but also in the one to come” (Eph.1:18-21).

Dozens of other scriptures could be sighted, proving that power is a central issue in the kingdom of God. The same power that raised Jesus from that dead is available to be exercised on our behalf and even to work within us for strength and energy to serve as well as to empower spiritual gifts. If followers of Jesus needed authority and power to fulfill their mission in the first century, then those who follow Jesus today need the same authority and power unless the mission has been changed…and no serious believer thinks that the mission has been altered.

The question then becomes, how do we receive power and authority for the mission today? Authority is ours already because we have been commissioned by Jesus to do his work…Go into all the world and make disciples. Power comes as it did to the first disciples on Pentecost – through encounters with the Holy Spirit. Those encounters come through prayer and fasting as we ask for the Spirit to fill us and refill us. They come through impartations as we ask Spirit-filled men and women to impart some gift to us by the laying on of hands. Power comes as we commit ourselves to pray in tongues for extended periods because to pray in tongues is to encounter the Spirit as we are built up in the Spirit (Jude 20). Even more than that, we may receive power when we step into opportunities for ministry that require power – praying for healing, evangelism, deliverance, and so forth. Power is essential to our calling but rarely comes without us pursuing a greater and greater experience of the Holy Spirit. In the same way that electricity is available in our homes, it does not flow until we plug into the source. “Plugging in” is our part. Releasing power to undergird our authority is his part.

Many churches today believe in the power of God to save, but for little else. In fact, those churches will discourage or even forbid the pursuit of spiritual power through miraculous gifts and encounters with the Spirit. The result has been a powerless church that offers much but delivers little more than the world can deliver and, at times, offers less. When we are sick do we call the elders or the doctor first? When we are emotionally wounded do we ask Jesus to heal our broken heart or do we seek out psychiatric professionals first who have been trained and certified by the world? When we suffer with depression, do we go to the church for prayer and deliverance first or do we seek out the newest drug therapies?

Often, today’s churches send their members to the world for answers because they have none. They have none because they do not operate in the power of the kingdom.   To seek spiritual power, in order to fulfill our assignments on the earth, is not about pride or arrogance – it is a biblical prayer and mandate. I want to encourage you not to shy away from the power of God but to pursue it even as you pursue Jesus. You will be blessed in doing so and will be a source of blessing for others.

We are so much more beautiful than we know, and more powerful than we realize. Often when we are solely preoccupied with the present, we can lose sight of where we are going and who we are becoming. We get caught up with negatives, burdened by our sense of lack. At this point we need someone to tell us who we are in Christ. We need people to remind us of our true identity. We need our companions to speak into our future destiny. Someone needs to see the treasure and not just the earthen vessel. (Graham Cooke, Coming Into Alignment, p. 21. Brilliant Book House)

I like the way Cooke said that.  One phrase says that we need our companions to speak into our future destiny. That is another way of saying that we need to speak life over others. In the Kingdom, our “future destiny” is not so much about what we are going to do, but about who we are going to become. I’m more and more convinced that our sense of who we are in connection with whom God is, is everything.

Most of us, as believers, have a high view of God. We see him as majestic, powerful, able to do the impossible, eternal, loving, and good. However, we still tend to maintain a low view of ourselves coupled with the idea that we must constantly perform for our Heavenly Father in order to have his approval and in order for him to respond to our prayers. When our prayers aren’t answered immediately, our natural man wants to believe it is because we don’t “make the cut” with God and so we miss his favor.

That view of God’s love, favor, and who we are misses the gospel completely. Jesus died for our sins and God credited us with his righteousness. That is one, brief accurate expression of the gospel. We are always loved by God, who is always willing to act in our best interest, because we are always righteous in Christ. David had a prophetic handle on that truth we he said, “Blessed is he whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord does will never count against him” (Ps.32:1-2).

Because we are in Christ, God does not count our sin or our weaknesses against us. The sin that separates a man from God has been dealt with at the cross. God does not ignore our sins because he wants us to mature and become like Jesus, but he does not count them against us and hold a grudge because we stumbled. Paul tells us that “God calls things that are not as though they were” (Rom.4:17). God always has a future view so he sees you as the finished product of his grace rather than as the struggling person you may be today.

God wants us to do the same for ourselves and for others. I might not yet have great faith, but a prophet will address me as a man of faith because that is who I am in the eyes of God who sees me in the future. He is making me into that, so that is who I am to him. When that is spoken over me, my identity is shaped by that declaration or descriptor. Not only that, but it puts something into play in the spiritual realm to help make that a reality. When I say what God says about myself or others, then it is his word being declared and his word always fulfills his purpose.

When I can begin to see myself as God sees me, then my faith can rise because I know he loves me, esteems me, and has a great destiny for me. I will have assurance that he will answer my prayers, provide for my needs, and protect me from the enemy because he delights in me. Will he discipline me at times? Yes, because he loves me and is shaping me into my destiny. But you are always so welcome in the throne room of your Father who is eager to do good for you and he wants you to know that. Today, speak well of yourself because your heavenly Father does and be a source of blessing to those around you by the words you speak over them.

As a pastor, I constantly deal with the disappointment of believers who have experienced some tragedy or a when a deep desire of someone’s heart has not yet been met in prayer. The question in their heart, whether spoken or not, is whether God really cares about their pain and did he have some hand in what happened? Sometimes you can’t improve on what another person says. I want to share an extended quote from Bill Johnson this morning that speaks to that question. Bill is a pastor on the west coast who has a world-wide ministry of healing. His church has seen countless people with cancer healed by the power of God, but his own father died of cancer.

“In spite of our many breakthroughs with others, I arrived at my own Valley of Baca when my dad died of cancer following a six-month battle. It was as though I pushed against a thousand-pound rock for six months; it never budged. Spiritual disease can set in when any of us has disappointment that is not brought into the open for God’s healing touch. ‘Hope deferred, makes the heart sick’ (Pov.13:12). I knew that allowing disappointment to dominate my heart would cause a blindness of my eyes to the hand of God working in me.

Strengthening myself in the Lord helped me to stay away from anxiety long enough to make an important discovery: next to the thousand-pound rock is a five hundred-pound rock that I couldn’t have moved before the battle for my dad’s life. Pushing against the rock that never moved actually strengthened me by reinforcing my resolve to live in divine purpose and to establish the backbone of perseverance. By refusing to change my focus, I discovered that I can now move the five hundred-pound rock that I couldn’t have moved before the battle. To keep myself from the sickness of heart warned about in Proverbs 13:12, I monitored the attitude of my heart. This was one way of turning my valley of weeping into springs of refreshing, for it is from the heart that all the issues of life flow (Prov.4:23).

I can’t afford to have thoughts in my head that aren’t in God’s. It’s a great misconception that God gives cancer – He doesn’t have it to give. I refuse to blame God for my dad’s cancer or any other calamity in life, for that matter. We simply live in a world of conflict and sin. Bad stuff happens. While I may not understand why, I do understand that neither God nor his covenant is deficient.

While God is big enough to use every situation for his glory, it doesn’t mean that the given problem was his will. Not everything that happens in life is God’s will. We must stop blaming him. The cornerstone of our theology is the fact that God is always good and is the giver of only good gifts…there is no evil or darkness in him.

His goodness and faithfulness become the focus of my praise. I celebrate those aspects of his nature during what sometimes appear to be contradictory circumstances. After my dad’s death, I discovered the privilege of giving God a sacrificial offering of praise that I will never be able to give him in eternity. My offering was given in the midst of sadness, disappointment, and confusion – none of which I will ever experience in Heaven. Only in this life will we be able to give an offering with that kind of fragrance” (Bill Johnson, Strengthening Yourself in the Lord, p.151-152, DestinyImage).

I felt someone my need that good word this morning. Be blessed today in the One who only gives good gifts.

The great thing about cessationist thinking (God doesn’t operate in miracles any more) is that you never have to wonder if God has just spoken to you or pray your heart out for a miracle. If you do believe that God still intervenes in your life in direct ways, then you will wonder, at times, if you just heard the voice of God or another voice.

Gideon faced that same dilemma. Suddenly, out of nowhere he had experienced an angelic visitation and had begun to hear from the Lord directly. Apparently, this was somewhat new to our reluctant hero and he had some concerns. His strategy was to ask for signs of confirmation that he was hearing from the Lord and not from a weird well of subconscious fantasies. In the 6^th chapter of Judges we read, “Gideon said to God, ‘If you will save Israel by my hand as you have promised – look, I will place a wool fleece on the threshing floor. If there is dew only in the fleece and all the ground is dry, then I will know that you will save Israel by my hand as you said. And that is what happened’” (Jud.6:36-37). Interestingly, after God provided that sign for Gideon, Gideon asked him to reverse the process the next morning just for good measure.

Although this sounds like a real lack of faith, God did not rebuke him for being so careful. After all, the fleece thing could have just been a weird meteorological phenomenon. Gideon demonstrates an important principle in knowing God’s will for your life. Sometimes, what we believe we are hearing God tell us needs to be confirmed before we move ahead. There are several examples in scripture of men asking for clarification and confirmation when a dream, a word from God, or a prophetic word pointed them in a radically new direction for their life.

Gideon had already asked for the sign that the words the angel had spoken to him were from God. The angel touched the offering that Gideon had placed on a stone and it burst into flames as the angel disappeared.   You might think that this display was confirmation enough, but Gideon still doubted his own capacity to hear God clearly and wanted to make sure he was not being deceived by the enemy. God didn’t seem to be offended by his request for confirmations. After all, God had instructed him to “go in the strength that he had.” He was going… but carefully.

In 1 Samuel 14, we see another example of a fleece or a confirmation. In this example, Jonathan got the notion that he and his armor bearer were to assault a Philistine garrison by themselves. Jonathan said, “Come, lets go over to the outpost of these uncircumcised fellows. Perhaps, the Lord will act in our behalf.” For confirmation, Jonathan put out a fleece. “We will cross over toward the men and let them see us. If they say to us, ‘Wait there until we come to you,’ we will stay where we are. But if they say, ‘Come up to us,’ we will climb up, because that will be our sign that the Lord has given them into our hands.” The sign was given and God gave the entire garrison into the hands of Jonathan and his armor bearer.

In the old tabernacle, there was something called the Urim and Thummim that were maintained by the priests. No one knows exactly what they were, but God communicated through them and godly leaders would often go to priest and ask for confirmation about whether they should go into battle or not against a neighboring tribe. The priest would consult the Lord through these objects and give the leader confirmation as to whether his prompting to go into battle was from the Lord or not.

In the New Testament, God also confirmed his word with signs. In Acts 10, we are told how God extended the first formal invitation to enter the Kingdom of God to Gentiles. Remember that the church was opened first only to Jews. It was considered “unlawful” for Jews to fellowship with Gentiles. One day, Peter was praying at noontime. As he prayed, he fell into a trance in which he saw a sheet full of unclean animals being lowered from heaven with the command for him to kill and eat some of the animals. Peter, being kosher, refused to do so. In his vision, the sheet was lowered three times and he was told not to call anything impure that God had declared to be clean. As Peter awoke from the vision, three “unclean men” (Gentiles) were asking for him. Their presence confirmed the dream and the understanding that God had opened the kingdom up to the Gentiles as well as to the Jews.

There are many other examples of signs confirming the word of God that had come to someone in an unexpected way. The fleece was not the last time Gideon received a sign. As God brought him to the day of battle against Midian, he told Gideon that if he were still afraid, he could sneak into the enemy camp that night for another sign of confirmation that God was going to use him to deliver Israel from their oppressors. Gideon took God up on the invitation, sneaked into the camp, and heard two soldiers talking about a dream, which they interpreted as confirmation of their defeat at the hands of Gideon (Jud.7:13-15). That confirmation gave Gideon the faith to lead Israel into battle in a most unlikely way.

I don’t think we need to seek confirmation on everything we are hearing from the Lord –especially when it clearly lines up with scripture. But on life-altering decisions – marriage, a move to a mission field, a significant career change, adoptions, a church, etc. – asking for confirmation of your direction through signs that confirm what you believe you are hearing from the Lord is a biblical principle you may want to employ. Blessings today in all you do.

For the past week, the news has given microscopic coverage to the latest shooting on a school campus that reflects the brokenness of our culture. It took only minutes for those who seek greater gun control to speak out and for those who want more guns to reply. We are a culture that wants to focus on symptoms rather than causation. More or less gun control is like trying to find a cure for AIDS rather than addressing the sexual behaviors that produce and maintain AIDS in a society fueled by the emptiness of the hearts that try to find some semblance of love and belonging in promiscuity.

The problem is not guns or AIDS but the human soul that needs regeneration by the Holy Spirit. It is the Spirit of God that pushes back against sin. Genesis declares, “Then the Lord said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; nevertheless his days shall be one hundred and twenty years” (Gen.6:3). Two verses later, we are given clarity about this verse. “Then the Lord saw that the wickedness of man was great on the earth, and that every intent of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Gen.6:5).

God’s Spirit had been striving or contending with man’s sinful nature that had been corrupted beyond the “fall of man” in the Garden. The presence of demonic spirits on the earth had magnified the problems of a fallen nature. As a result, man had become almost incurably evil. What restraint there had been, was produced by the Holy Spirit contending against evil in the hearts of men. It is no different today. The primary constraint against sin in the world is the activity of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of men.

As we fumble around trying to find solutions to STD’s, school shootings, terrorism, racism, and so forth we seem to miss the essential cause – the broken and sinful hearts of men. Man has a fallen nature that will only deteriorate as he distances himself from the Spirit of God. So…let’s remove prayer from public life; forbid the reading of the Bible; forbid mentioning the name of Jesus in our schools and universities; strip any suggestion of the Ten Commandments from public buildings; push back against Christian standards; put people in jail for trying to be faithful to those standards; lobby to eliminate the term Merry Christmas (Christ Mass); and ridicule anything or anyone who stands for Biblical truth. In essence, let’s quench the Spirit, ridicule the Word of God, and create as much distance as possible between our culture and the Spirit of God – who restrains sin – and wonder why our culture is deteriorating.

Not only that, but let’s short-circuit another of God’s established restraints against sin – personal responsibility. Paul clearly states this principle when he says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature, from that nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit, from the Spirit will reap eternal life” (Gal.6:7-8). God has established a law that says we reap consequences from our chosen actions.

Negative, sinful actions produce negative consequences, which should then act as teachers to point us to better decisions. If I put my finger in a fan, a painful consequence arises. If I am teachable at all, I will learn not to put my finger in the fan. If I touch a hot stove, the painful consequence should teach me not to duplicate that action. That is God’s Learning Channel. Make good decisions and reap positive consequences. Make bad decisions and reap pain and sorrow.

But our culture is bent on erasing both the notion of personal responsibility and the consequences of bad behavior. Everyone gets a trophy – even if you didn’t try or didn’t care. Everyone will be supported by the taxes of hardworking people – even if you have the capacity to work but choose not to. For the sake of self-esteem, there will be no real negative consequence if you are nine years old and disrupt a classroom daily, year after year. Any negative decision will be assigned to genetic predispositions or brain chemistry. We could go on, but you get the drift.

I’m not saying there should be no grace and forgiveness for people in those situations, but I am saying we no longer point to the sin that brings the consequence but only work to eradicate the consequence without holding anyone responsible for their actions. Negative consequences for bad decisions are part of God’s grace to restrain sin in the world. I’m not saying they eradicate sin, but I am saying they were designed by God to restrain or inhibit sin. When we hold no one responsible for their negative actions, remove discipline from the classroom, or take away from those who worked hard and reward those who have made no effort, we undermine God’s principles.

When a culture chooses to distance its people from the influence of the Holy Spirit, the Word of God, and biblical principles, what is left to restrain sin? When people are severely broken, counseling will only get you so far because the dangerously broken people will not show up for counseling. If you take away the gun of a bitter, broken, angry person he will simply drive his car into crowds or learn how to make explosives out of household chemicals. He will poison water supplies and explode dirty bombs.

Government is busy trying to control and reduce the influence of the only thing that can change hearts and heal a culture – the saving grace of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit who heals and reconciles. We are in a downward spiral that our leaders recognize but for which they offer no solutions – except more control. Who then will control the controllers who also have a fallen nature? Spiritual revival in this country is the key to solving shootings in our schools, snipers on our highways, drug dealers on our street corners, and racism in our hearts. “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms” (Eph.6:12).

The church needs to say so and we need to lead others to Christ in this nation in unprecedented numbers. Government has no solutions, only temporary stopgaps. The church offers the only lasting solution because Jesus Christ and the Spirit of God are the only antidotes to sin. Waiting for government to come up with a program or platform to stop school shootings or any other tragedy is a pipe dream. The battle is in the spiritual realm and our constant prayers for this nation are critical.

We need to pray for God to elevate faith-filled leaders who will point this nation to righteousness once again. We need to pray for a spirit of revival and reconciliation to be poured out on America. We need to pray against the spirit of anti-Christ that is so evident in Washington and against a host of other spirits that are trying to possess this nation and our children. We must also do our part to share Jesus with those around us because the Kingdom of God typically advances one heart at time. Pray for the families who lost loved ones in Oregon but also pray for

God’s hand to rule this nation once again – not guns or government. Remember peace and grace come from our Lord Jesus Christ. Be blessed today.

Therefore let us leave the elementary teachings about Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God, instruction about baptisms, the laying on of hands, the resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. (Heb.6:1-2)

In Hebrews 6, the writer provides a list of what he considers to be elementary teachings or doctrines about Christ. He does not mean to say that they are unimportant but rather that they are foundational. He indicates that he wants to move on from these foundational teachings to other important teachings related to Jesus, but nevertheless, these foundational teachings must be in place before other doctrines and teachings can stand.
We are probably familiar with teachings on repentance, faith, baptism, the resurrection and eternal judgment. But notice two things: the writer says “baptisms” rather than “baptism” and he lists the “laying on of hands” as a foundational doctrine of Christ and, by extension, of the church. We can talk about “baptisms” at a later time but for now lets consider “the laying on of hands.” How many sermons have you heard on that topic? Many of us have probably never heard a sermon or a teaching on that even though it is listed as a foundational doctrine of the church.

I was scanning a book recently written by Sam Soleyn entitled, Elementary Doctrines. His chapter on the laying on of hands caught my attention. Since this is a neglected or ignored topic in many churches, I thought I would try to summarize some of Sam’s thoughts and add a few of my own. First of all, let me list the ways in which this practice was expressed in the New Testament church. Most often, we saw Jesus and his follower lay hands on people for healing. Secondly, we see it practiced for the impartation of spiritual gifts. Thirdly, it was used to confirm gifts and callings, and, finally, it was used to commission and send forth individuals on missions for the church.

Ultimately, the laying on of hands was practiced whenever power and or authority were expressed in healing or whenever power and authority were imparted to members of the church by leaders in the church. The laying on of hands is about directing power and authority. Sam makes an interesting observation related to the neglect or absence of this teaching in most churches. He says that since the practice is related to conveying power and authority, churches whose theology does not embrace present day power and the authority of the believer have no need for this practice.

Secondly, he points out that most churches have a democratic view of the church rather than a theocratic view. In western cultures, we have been taught for centuries that government has its authority based on the consent of the people. The people decide who will be their leaders by voting. Authority flows from the bottom to the top so to speak. In many churches, the same view has been applied to the structure of the church where congregations vote to accept pastors or to install deacons or elders. In an odd way, it’s as if God receives his right to govern through the consent of the people. Pastors then take on the feel of a priest who represents the people before God.

However, the New Testament model is that pastors, prophets, teachers, etc. represent God before the people. Authority and power flows from the top down. When that is true, the laying on of hands conveys that power and authority through the leading of the Holy Spirit. God directs healing, releases a spiritual gift, or sets someone in leadership by directing those who are already Spirit-filled and already walk in some authority to impart or conform that power and authority by laying hands on them. In one sense, laying hands on someone is symbolic but, in the spirit realm, something real and tangible is released from one person to another.

For instance, Paul tells Timothy, “Do not neglect your gift, which was given you through a prophetic message when the body of elders laid their hands on you” (1 Tim. 4:14). He also warned Timothy, “Do not lay hands upon anyone too hastily and thereby share responsibility for the sins of others; keep yourself free from sin” (1 Tim.5:22).   From these scriptures we see that some spiritual gift was imparted to Timothy when a group of elders laid hands on him at the direction of the Holy Spirit that came as a prophetic word.

Secondly, he instructs Timothy to be careful about whom he lays hands on. The implication is that Timothy was imparting a spiritual gift or was imparting authority to someone to lead in some capacity in the church. Either way, Timothy was not to be too free in giving gifts or authority. The person to whom it was imparted needed to have the character to carry the weight of the gift or the leadership. Timothy was told that if he were careless in imparting these things and if those things were abused, he would share some responsibility in that.

Remember then, the laying on of hands is related to power and authority and is most often given by God to those who carry his message as a confirmation that they truly represent him. Jesus preached the Kingdom of God and then demonstrated it – often by healing or deliverance through the laying on of hands. His followers did the same and we are to do likewise. Jesus said, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well” (Mark 16:17-18, emphasis added). It was assumed that all believers would preach the gospel, either to one or to many, and that with the preaching of the gospel there would be a demonstration of power. That power would often be conveyed through the laying on of hands.

There was also a need for confirming those who were called to lead in a congregation or that were being sent on a mission. Hands were laid on them as a confirmation that these men and women were authentic representatives of the church and the Lord. I also believe that gifts and spiritual authority were imparted (such as to Timothy) that enabled them to fulfill the call that God had placed on their lives.

The laying on of hands is a great foundational doctrine that should still be practiced in every church today. It requires a belief that the Kingdom is a matter power and not just words. It requires a belief that God still directs his church through a clear leading of the Spirit and that prayers, declarations, and setting people in leadership roles have spiritual realities related to them rather than being words that only express sentiment. It takes a clear view of the Kingdom in which God delegates authority through his leaders rather than through boards or voting blocks.

Today’s blog was just food for thought. I hope it gave you something to think about and a little insight into the practice of laying on hands. Be blessed.

Pray without ceasing. (1 Thess.5:17)

Most of us are aware of the verse above. Have you ever considered its meaning? If we think of formal prayer and take Paul’s injunction literally, we could never leave our knees or our prayer closet in which case we could not fulfill a great deal of what Christ has commanded us to do – go and make disciples, visit those in prison, feed the hungry, clothe the naked, cast out demons, etc.

In another verse, Paul counsels us regarding prayer when he says, “With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints” (Eph.6:18). In this scripture, the word “times” is kairos. In the original language, kairos does not speak of just any time but speaks of strategic times or opportune times.

Paul is encouraging us to be watchful for significant, strategic, and opportune times to pray for kingdom outcomes as we oppose the enemy. I believe his call to “pray without ceasing” has the same sense. In other words, every time a challenge arises, a temptation floods our minds, the hand of satan is evident, or a need is apparent, etc. then pray.

Remember, it is our prayers that release the power and resources of heaven into any situation. If you are in a war, it is a good practice to shoot anytime you see the enemy or encounter a stronghold. Prayer is our way of shelling the enemy. If the enemy is constantly under fire, he will always be on the defensive rather than launching an offensive. We should pray, then, on every occasion when we sense the presence or work of the adversary.

But what if you find it hard to pray? I love a story I found in a book by Johnathan Welton entitled The School of the Seers (p.40). He writes of an old man who is sick in bed. His daughter asked the local minister to come and pray with her father. As the minister arrived he noticed an empty chair by the bed and the old man felt like he needed to give an explanation. He said, “ I never told anyone this, not even my daughter…But all of my life I have never known how to pray. At church I used to hear the preacher talk about prayer, but it went right over my head. I abandoned any attempts at prayer until one day about four years ago my best friend said to me, ‘Joe, prayer is just a simple matter of having a conversation with Jesus. Here is what I suggest. Sit down in a chair; place an empty chair in front of you, and, in faith, see Jesus in the chair. It’s not spooky because he promised, ‘I’ll be with you always.’ … So I tried it and I liked it so much that I do it a couple of hours every day. I’m careful though. If my daughter saw me talking to an empty chair, she’d either have a nervous breakdown or send me off to the funny farm.”

The story goes on to tell about the afternoon the old man died. His daughter found him dead. As she talked to the minister she reported that there was something strange about the way he died. She said, “Apparently, just before Daddy died, he leaned over and rested his head on the chair beside the bed. What do you make of that?” I don’t know about you, but I think that would be a great way to go. Pray without ceasing. Keep the enemy on the run. Pray in your own way but, if need be, pull up a chair. Blessings in Him today.

But the Spirit explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons, by means of the hypocrisy of liars seared in their own conscience as with a branding iron. Tim.4:1-2

Doctrine is one of those words that sounds old fashioned or too theological to be of much interest. However, it is a word that shows up numerous times in the New Testament with warnings attached to it in the same way that Paul warns Timothy in the passage above. Actually, doctrine is simply a word that means teachings (and is often translated that way) or the body of truth the bible reveals about Jesus and godly living. Godly living does not just mean moral living, although it includes that, but means to live as God, rather than culture, would have us live.

We live in a day when the Word of God is under attack. Some simply reject the idea of God and anything attached to the notion of faith or a spiritual realm. These are men and women who proudly wave the banner of atheism and scoff at anything religious. Stephen Hawking, Richard Dawkins, Bill Maher, and a number of other intellectuals and celebrities wave the flag of unbelief proudly and influence those who have formed no religious convictions or those who simply want to emulate their cultural idols. These individuals oppose anything religious but are not the greatest enemies of the cross.

Warnings in scripture typically point to religious leaders who oppose the cross by not rejecting Jesus or God but by twisting or diluting the gospel. A lie which is flavored with truth is the most insidious and damaging because the lie is typically in seed form – barely detectable initially but growing later as cultural values and perspectives water it.

Doctrinal error tends to fall into two broad categories: teachings about Jesus himself and the nature of salvation. Even in the days of the apostles false teachings were beginning to emerge about Jesus. Some said that although he was an interesting figure and had an unusual gift for teaching, ultimately he was only the illegitimate son of a carpenter. Others said he was John the Baptist risen from the dead or Elijah or Jeremiah come back to call Israel to repentance. Even in John’s letters you can discern that some were teaching that Jesus did not actually come in the flesh and never literally died a physical death. Instead, Jesus was a spirit that only appeared to be human. In our day some make the same arguments or say that he was a great prophet but not the Son of God and that after his preaching career he settled down with Mary Magdalene and raised a house full of kids. A few still claim that Jesus never lived but was only a myth although the weight of history and scholarship is greatly against them.

The second area of doctrinal error tends to fall in the arena of what saves us. The man on the street may simply believe that if you live a pretty good life compared to neighborhood drug dealers or co-workers cheating on their spouses you will go to heaven. Muslims, Hindus and Jews argue that when you finally stand before God in judgment, your good works will have to outweigh your sins or there is no salvation. That is “works salvation.” In the minds of many, grace is simply God giving you the opportunity to earn your salvation by your own efforts.

The pure gospel declares that salvation comes by grace alone through faith in the sacrificial death of Jesus. Nothing we can do can obligate God to open the gates of heaven for us but he does so willingly, as a gift, through Jesus. Paul is very clear when he says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast” (Eph.2:8-9). Works matter – but only as evidence of a changed heart after salvation has been given or as a criterion for rewards that will be given by God to the faithful at the judgment.

The most sinister doctrines seem to be those that agree that Jesus is the Son of God, the Messiah, who died for our sins but that salvation not only depends on our faith in him but also on our works or our religious rituals. There were a group of Jews who hounded Paul from place to place. These men would come in behind Paul where he had established churches and teach that salvation came not only through believing in Jesus but also in keeping the Law of Moses. Paul calls these “false teachers” out in Galatians when he says, “As we have already said, so now I say again: If anybody is preaching to you a gospel other than what you accepted, let him be eternally condemned” (Gal.1:9)! The false gospel was “Faith in Jesus + works of the Law = Salvation.” Notice the strong language Paul used as he passionately condemned these teachers.

Jesus also warned about the doctrines of men taught as the commandments of God as did just about every writer of the New Testament. In the scripture quoted at the first of this blog, Paul warned Timothy that there would be deceitful spirits and doctrines of demons taught by men who would present misleading teachings without any pangs of conscience. Those teachings will draw people away from essential truths of scripture that will cost some their salvation while being wrapped in enough truth to be received without protest by many believers.

Today whole denominations are ignoring clear biblical teachings regarding homosexuality and the nature of marriage not to mention 2000 years of church doctrine on the matters in an attempt to be tolerant and loving as defined by our culture rather than scripture. The same groups of believers are questioning biblical infallibility because it disagrees with cultural norms and are hedging on the biblical position that only one road leads to heaven and that road is faith in Jesus Christ.

Believers who depend only on preachers or popular writers for their understanding of biblical truth are highly vulnerable to confusion and misleading doctrines. I’m not saying that preachers and writers should be avoided. I preach, teach, and write myself but I don’t want to be the sole spiritual authority in any one’s life. Every believer is responsible for knowing and studying the word of God for himself. Personal study is the only way to be settled on the revealed will of God and the solid essentials of the faith so that you can recognize the counterfeits of the enemy – the doctrines of demons that are so prevalent today. What we believe matters.

In a world where presidents and politicians arrogantly misquote scriptures to sell their point of view, where Hollywood celebrities push their own brand of spirituality, and where new Bible translations have chosen to be politically correct rather than accurate we need to know for ourselves what the Word of God says and stand on that Word.  Let me encourage you to be in the Word every day – not just reading it but studying and reflecting on what it says. It’s not all easy to understand but the essentials of the faith and salvation are clear. The practical teachings of godly living are clear.

If we are not confident about what God says on many issues we will fold to the pressure of culture when the heat is on. If we deny biblical teachings that are culturally unpopular then, in time, we will most likely begin to deny Jesus. Get the word of God in you. Listen to preachers, teachers, and read great books but be sure to confirm their teaching by your own study. It’s more important today than ever.

We just finished a three-day conference at out church entitled Unveiling Islam. We had two guest speakers who brought us a reality-based view of this religion that encompasses about 20% of the world’s population and represents the majority population in about 25% of all nations. One of our speakers was Stephen Mansfield who is a New York Times Best Selling Author and has a close connection to the Kurds, one of the Muslim groups fighting ISIS. Our second “speaker” was actually a missionary couple who live in the Middle East and minister to Muslim refugees from Syria.

Both of our speakers acknowledged the danger of radical Islam in the world and the need to tenaciously oppose ISIS and all the other terrorist organizations but also brought encouraging news that more Muslims are coming to Christ today than at any other time in history. For the most part, they are not being converted by anyone pointing out all the flaws of Mohammed or the Koran but through supernatural encounters with Jesus who is visiting large numbers of Muslims in dreams and visions and these men and women are giving their hearts to “the man in white.” These new believers include leaders of Mosques and members of ISIS.

On the Day of Pentecost (see Acts 2), the promise was restated that in the last days God would pour his Spirit out on all men and women who would dream dreams and see visions. The promise was for those present that day and for those who were far off. The promise was primarily for those who had already come to Jesus but we are also seeing that God is using dreams and visions to draw men and women to Jesus. A closer look at the New Testament reminds us that Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9) and Cornelius (Acts 10) also had supernatural encounters with Jesus through dreams and visions before coming to faith. Others are coming because of healings in the name of Jesus and because they are asking God to speak to them… and He is.

Our missionary couple told us that their main approach to Bible study is to simply read a passage and then ask the Muslims to ask God what it means. That is a revolutionary approach for Muslims who have rarely studied the Koran (the majority of Muslims in the world cannot read) but have simply been told by the leaders of their mosques what the Koran says (or supposedly says). When these Muslims ask God to speak, he does, and it is changing their hearts and lives.

Remember that most followers of Islam in the Middle East are descendants of Ishmael, the first son of Abraham, born through Hagar who was Sarah’s handmaid.   Although Hagar was driven into the wilderness by Sarah’s jealousy, God did not forsake her nor her son Ishmael. Two verses tell us a great deal about Ismael and his descendants. The first says, “The angel of the Lord also said to her: “You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers” (Gen.16:11-22). The second verse tells us, “And Abraham said to God, “If only Ishmael might live under your blessing!” Then God said, “Yes, but your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will call him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard you: I will surely bless him; I will make him fruitful and will greatly increase his numbers. He will be the father of twelve rulers, and I will make him into a great nation. But my covenant I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year” (Gen.17:18-22).

Interestingly, God made Ishmael into a great nation and told us that he would live in hostility toward all his brothers or, at least, his half-brothers who would be the sons of Isaac – the Jews. Although there has been almost constant warfare between Israel and the descendants of Ishmael from which Islam has sprung, God still has purposes for the 1.2 billion people who are born into that faith. Most have not chosen Islam. They were simply born into it and have never had an option. Yet, on the Day of Pentecost their ancestors were in the crowd hearing Peter’s sermon. I believe that God is preparing a great harvest among the Muslims, if for no other reason, because these are the sons of Abraham (through Hagar) and through the centuries God has done many things on behalf of the patriarchs. But the harvest is coming as well because God loves these men and women.

The harvest is beginning through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit and, as our church stood and prayed for the Muslim world last night that God might continue to release his Spirit and that the “man in white” might become famous among all Muslims, I hope you will pray for the supernatural move of God in the Muslim world as well. I believe it is a prayer God greatly desires to hear.

Early in the morning, Jerub-Baal (that is, Gideon) and all his men camped at the spring of Harod. The Lord said to Gideon, “You have too many men for me to deliver Midian into their hands. In order that Israel may not boast against me that her own strength has saved her, announce now to the people, ‘Anyone who trembles with fear may turn back and leave Mount Gilead.’ ” So twenty-two thousand men left, while ten thousand remained. But the Lord said to Gideon, “There are still too many men. Take them down to the water, and I will sift them for you there. If I say, ‘This one shall go with you,’ he shall go; but if I say, ‘This one shall not go with you,’ he shall not go.” So Gideon took the men down to the water. There the Lord told him, “Separate those who lap the water with their tongues like a dog from those who kneel down to drink.” Three hundred men lapped with their hands to their mouths. All the rest got down on their knees to drink. The Lord said to Gideon, “With the three hundred men that lapped I will save you and give the Midianites into your hands. Let all the other men go, each to his own place. Judges 7:1-8

This is part of the story of Gideon whom God raised up as a judge to deliver Israel from the oppression of Midian. Many of us desire to see God move in powerful, supernatural ways. We long to see miracles, healings, demons driven out, and whole families and nations radically saved and we want to be part of all of that. I need to be reminded from time to time that God is still willing to move in those ways but he typically won’t move when we don’t put ourselves at risk. What I mean by “putting ourselves at risk” is that we allow God to put us in positions so that if he doesn’t show up and do what only he can do, then nothing is going and to happen and we risk failure, embarrassment, loss, and maybe more.

Gideon faced an expansive force of Midianites. Initially, he had 32,000 men ready to go into battle. Even then they were vastly outnumbered and outgunned. But God was determined to turn Israel’s hearts back to him through an act of supernatural deliverance so that Israel would have no doubt that it was God who gave them the victory. After two “siftings,” Gideon was left with only three hundred men. The remaining 300 faced impossible odds and that is the perfect place to see God move.

The three hundred were never asked to face the enemy in a direct confrontation with swords and slings but they were asked to walk in faith and to act in seemingly foolish ways that still put them at risk. They were each issued a torch, a jar under which they might hide the torch, and a trumpet – not the high-tech armor and rocket launchers they had hoped for. Then they were asked to move silently to the enemy camp in the middle of the night, surround the camp, and at Gideon’s signal they were to break the jars, flash the torches, blow the trumpets, and shout “For the Lord and Gideon.” Sounds like a great plan to defeat tens of thousands of hardened Midianite troops doesn’t it? If God is not in this plan, Gideon and his 300 will shortly be toast. But as the jars break, the trumpets sound, the torches light up the night, and the men shout, the enemy believes that their camp has been overrun and in the dark the Midianite soldiers begin to kill whatever is moving in the shadows – which turns out to be one another. Then they flee in the night with Gideon in pursuit.

If you recall, Gideon was no military man, nor was he a great man of faith in the beginning. As you read the surrounding chapters of this event you will see that God gave Gideon experiences that built his faith to the point that he was willing to risk – an encounter with an angel, a ram’s fleece set out in the dew on two consecutive mornings for confirmation that Gideon was actually hearing God, an over-heard conversation between Midianite soldiers to confirm that God’s Spirit had already implanted fear and panic in their hearts before the pivotal battle. God did not ask for perfect faith nor did he ask for faith that wasn’t based on previous experiences with God’s faithfulness, but in the end Gideon still had to place himself (and his men) at risk to see the mighty hand of God at work.

I believe God still wants us to put ourselves in positions where if he doesn’t show up we will at least look foolish until we no longer mind looking foolish for God at some point because obedience becomes its own reward. Most of us won’t have to face a horde of Midianites, but if we want to begin to see the miracles of God we will have to pray for healing with no excuses and no disclaimers about “if it be thy will.” We will have to pray over strangers at Sam’s Club, the mall, and between latte’s at Starbucks.   We will have to share our faith at convenience stores and with risky relatives and neighbors to see what God will do. We may have to give more than we can afford and commit to things that we know are of God but that we can’t see how we will be able to raise the money. We may have to take mission trips to dangerous or at least very dirty parts of the world to see God move in supernatural ways that only God can do so that only God can get the glory.

When we keep it safe we won’t see much of the supernatural because it won’t be needed. If I had been Gideon I would have been believing God for thousands of Israeli troops to show up unexpectedly with armor that had miraculously come in the mail that day. But God wanted to display his glory not Gideon’s and that only happens when we face the impossible because only then do we know without a doubt that God just did something amazing for us and through us. Just a reminder to me and, perhaps, to you that if I want to see God more than I must risk more. Be blessed and have a risky day.